I love to collect dried plants for fall decorations. I've been keeping my eye on several plants that are growing along the edge of the road, or the bean fields. I need to wait a bit to go harvest them.
There's a stand of milk weed at the edge of the field to the east of us. Once the pods split open, the plant can be cut and dried. They provide wonderful interest for a dried arrangement. My mother and I have spray painted milk weed pods gold to use in Christmas arrangements and package decorations, but they are beautiful in their natural colors.
Teasle is an invasive weed that gows in great clumps in our area. It has a wonderful, prickly head at the top of a tall stalk. You can make very dramatic arrangements with them. If you can harvest enough, you could bundle them together, rather the way you would make a bundle of corn stalks. (Check out the teasle in the basket at this site.) But, you have to be sure to use heavy leather gloves when you work with them, because sharp spines cover their stems.
There's a plant that we used to call "Indian Tobacco," when I was a child. It's real name is "Curly Dock." When it dries, it has a deep brown, seedy look, that contrasts the form of the other weeds, and adds more color to the arrangement.
I tend to suppliment what I find along the road with dried botannicals from places like Michael's and Hobby Lobby. One of my favorites is the dried lily pod.
You can see a wreath that uses the dark brown pods at this site.
It's almost time to harvest. I have several five gallon buckets in the garage, and as I harvest, I'll stand the plants in the buckets to finish drying. Before Thanksgiving, I'll create bouquets, tie them with twine, and then add raffia or a wide ribbon. Mother Nature sure gives us some lovely decorations.
Comments (10)
Ah, yes, Fred First posted a bit about milk weeds, recently. As for curly dock, that's one of the greens that we preferred when I was a kid. Mom would fill a large grocery bag full of poke and dock greens from plants growing along the highway. Our neck of the woods was too poor for anyone to consider spraying herbicides or insecticides along the highways, so it was safe eating for us--and delicious! (I haven't eaten dock in years!)
Do you recall that Ayla used teasel burrs for combing and currying?
Posted by Cop Car | September 10, 2006 9:35 PM
Posted on September 10, 2006 21:35
I'll have to go visit Fred's blog. My blog reading has been curtailed for a while, and I'd like to do some catching up.
I've never eaten curly dock leaves. I have enough reference books to be able to look up what is edible, but you're right, the question of pesticides makes it risky unless you know the area hasn't been sprayed. It's an amazingly prevalent roadside plant in this area.
Ayla? Forgive me....my memory must be shot! Give me a hint, huh? Yeah....teasle burrs might have been used to comb cotton too, but you'd have to find a way to protect your fingers!
Posted by buffy | September 11, 2006 10:53 AM
Posted on September 11, 2006 10:53
Clan of the Cave Bear
Valley of the Horses
Can't remember the others.
Posted by Cop Car | September 11, 2006 6:21 PM
Posted on September 11, 2006 18:21
Oh, yes! I knew someone who was addicted to those books. Unfortunately, I've never started the series, so I didn't recognize the name.
Posted by buffy | September 11, 2006 10:06 PM
Posted on September 11, 2006 22:06
Sorry, Buffy, my error. For some reason I thought that you had read the series. Some day. Hunky Husband and I even went to see the movie "Clan of the Cave Bear". A truly awful flick, as I recall. Reading some of the passages in Ms Auel's book was tough enough--when she was describing her version of what sex may have been like in pre-historic times. Seeing it on the screen was embarrassing. Too, for authenticity, the producers/directors/ whoever makes the artistic decisions decided that there should be no dialogue. True to the book, but must have been hard to figure out for HH. I felt for him.
Posted by Cop Car | September 12, 2006 8:51 AM
Posted on September 12, 2006 08:51
Yes, I think I recall some of the comments and reviews when the movie came out. I keep meaning to get to it, but it might be a while yet. I'd like to read a book called "Sarum," set in the area (and perhaps the days) of Stonehenge.
Posted by buffy | September 12, 2006 4:34 PM
Posted on September 12, 2006 16:34
I'll add "Sarum" to my list.
Posted by Cop Car | September 13, 2006 5:21 AM
Posted on September 13, 2006 05:21
If you get to it before I do.....let me know if it's a good read. The little I've read of it seemed interesting.
Posted by Buffy | September 13, 2006 3:55 PM
Posted on September 13, 2006 15:55
Thanks for the tips on dried flower, weed arrangements. I need a little inspiration to get me crackin. One of my favorite is cat o' nine tails.
I read Clan of the Cave Bear series many years ago, waited forever for her next book to come out and finally gave up. Is her lastest any good?
Posted by janet | September 14, 2006 10:23 PM
Posted on September 14, 2006 22:23
Janet, I'll have to look up Cat o' nine tails and see if we have it in this area.
We'll have to see what Cop Car has to say about the series.
Posted by buffy | September 15, 2006 7:49 PM
Posted on September 15, 2006 19:49